Electric interdental brush

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is an electric inter-dental brush device which is generally divided into a cleaning brush attached at a head assembly of the electric inter-dental brush device, a finger grip of a small size for holding a small-sized motor for driving the cleaning brush and a housing for holding a battery or AC adaptor for the small-sized motor and other components and parts of the electric inter-dental brush device. The finger grip and the housing are physically separated except through an electric cord connecting the small-sized motor and the battery or AC adaptor.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

This invention relates to an electric toothbrush, and more particularlyan electric inter-dental brush of a finger grip type having a freelydetachable brush at its tip end.

In general, an electrical toothbrush having a motor providing power ordrive and battery or an AC adapter was self contained, and compared to aconventional toothbrush, it was heavier and bulkier.

Due to the larger shape or bulkiness and heavier weight of theelectrical toothbrush when compared to a conventional toothbrush, theusage sensation felt by the user was different from the conventionalhand help/propelled toothbrush. This made it more difficult to utilizethe existing finger-based brushing techniques. When the user relied moreon the power generated by the movement of the brush, it was possible tolower the amount of plaque removable on a section by section basis.Especially with inter-dental space brush, the awkwardness associatedwith the weight and bulkiness made it more difficult to properly performthe brushing without a soft/tender touch so the user did not damage thegum. Also it is desirable to have the equipment waterproofed for dailyusage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide anelectric toothbrush of a finger grip type suitable for inter-dentalbrushing techniques.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an electrictoothbrush of a finger grip type having a detachable and light-weightcleaning brush at its tip end for allowing the user to utilize theexisting finger-relied inter-dental brushing techniques.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide anelectric inter-dental brush device of a finger grip type including afinger grip for containing a source of drive therein and a detachablecleaning brush powered by the source of drive.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide anelectric inter-dental brush device of a finger grip and rewinding typeincluding a finger grip for holding a source of drive and a detachablecleaning brush powered by the source of drive and a rewindableelectrical connection cord or wire connected between the source of driveand the cleaning brush.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, en electricinter-dental brush device utilizes a small-sized motor or ultrasonicvibrator as a source of drive to be housed in a finger grip of asmall-sized cylindrical shape for powering a cleaning brush to besecured at a tip end of the electric inter-dental brush device. Anoutput section of the electric inter-dental brush device is designed toprovide an appropriate amount or form of output drive to the cleaningbrush by increasing or decreasing the output of rotating power, or byconverting the output power into rotating movement, repeating movement,sliding movement, or a combination of two or more of these movements.

If the ultrasonic vibrator is used instead of the small-sized motor, anoutput section of the ultrasonic vibrator is housed inside the fingergrip. The driving power generated from the output section is transferredthrough a cleaning brush shaft which at one end away from the outputsection is the cleaning brush. The shaft penetrates through a headassembly of the electric inter-dental brush device. The head assembly isconnected to the finger grip of the electric inter-dental brush devicethrough a coupling section which allows the head assembly to beremovable from the finger grip. When the user uses the electricinter-dental brush device for oral cavity cleaning, the finger gripthereof can easily be held by fingers and provide maneuverability andusage sensation equivalent to a conventional (non-electric) toothbrushor an inter-dental space brush.

Electricity to run the small-sized motor or ultrasonic vibrator isprovided from a battery or batteries or from an AC converter adapterwhich is housed in a casing or housing of the electric inter-dentalbrush device. Electrical cords or wires to provide electricity to themotor or to the ultrasonic vibrator are to be adjusted at an appropriatelength. A waterproofed spool assembly is housed within the housing torewind the electrical cords or wires, contain components or parts for anelectrical power supply. This arrangement is effective in increasing theportability of the electric inter-dental brush device. A space in thehousing for the wound cord is enclosed. A cover is designed to cover upand enclose the space for the wound cord, the housing of the electricinter-dental brush device. The head assembly and the cover may be put onor removed directly to and from the housing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparentfrom the following detailed-description considered in connection withthe accompanying drawings which discloses the embodiments of the presentinvention. It should be understood, however, that the drawings aredesigned for the purposes of illustration only and not as a definitionof the limits of the invention.

In the drawings, wherein similar reference characters denote similarelements throughout the several views:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the condition where an electricinter-dental brush device according to the present invention is in use;

FIG. 2 is a cross sectional side view of the electric inter-dental brushdevice as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional plain view of a housing of the electricinter-dental brush device as shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the housing as shown in FIG.3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the electric inter-dental brush devicewith a suction cup according to another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a partially cut-away view of the electric inter-dental brushdevice as shown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the electric inter-dental brush deviceaccording to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the electric inter-dental brush deviceaccording to still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 9(A) to 9(C) are exploded views of a head assembly in the electricinter-dental brush device according to the present invention;

FIGS. 10(A) to 10(H) are front, side and cross-sectional views ofindividual components of the head assembly;

FIGS. 11(A) and 11(B) are enlarged assembled and cross-sectional viewsof the head assembly;

FIGS. 12(A) to 12(F) are schematic diagrams showing operation of safetyswitches; and

FIGS. 13(A) to 13(G) are views showing operation of another example ofsafety switches.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Turning now in detail to the drawings, the figures shows an electricinter-dental brush device according to several embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIGS. 1, 6, and 8 illustrates the electric inter-dental brush deviceaccording to three embodiments of the present invention. The electricinter-dental brush device as illustrated therein is generally dividedinto a cleaning brush 3 attached at a head assembly of the electricinter-dental brush device, a finger grip 1 of a small size for holding asource of drive for driving the cleaning brush 3 and a housing 4 forholding a power supply for the drive source and other components andparts of the electric inter-dental brush device. As illustrated in FIG.1, a small-sized motor 5 (FIG. 2) or an ultrasonic vibrator 24 (as inFIG. 8) is provided as source of electric drive for powering thecleaning brush 3.

An output section (gear box) 6 of the motor 5 is self contained in thefinger grip 1 to transfer the output from such driving device to thedetachable brush head assembly 2, which contains the cleaning brush 3located at the tip of the head assembly 2. The head assembly 2containing the cleaning brush 3 is detachable from the finger grip 1 forreplacements of the cleaning brush 3. An electric supply 16 (a batteryor batteries in FIG. 3) supplying electric power to the small-sizedmotor is physically separated from the finger grip 1 except via anelectric cord 13 connecting the small-sized motor 5 and the electricsupply 16. The electric supply 16 is contained within the housing 4. Thehousing 4 contains an electrical cord rewinding device, wherein theelectrical cord 13 is stored. All components or parts of the electricsupply 16 are also contained in the housing 4 to improve portability andshape. The housing 4 has a space or recess for receiving the finger grip1 and another space or recess for the head assembly 2.

While FIG. 9(A) shows the small-sized motor 5 of a diameter of 5.4 mm,for example, FIG. 9(B) shows in more detail the finger grip 1 and thehead assembly 2 and FIG. 9(C) shows a cross sectional view of the headassembly 2. As more clearly illustrated in FIGS. 10(A) to 10(H), thehead assembly 2 includes an up-down movement shaft 51 to which thecleaning brush 3 is attached. The up-down movement shaft 51 is alsocoupled with the small-sized motor 5 for rotational movement so that theshaft 51 carries out not only up-down movement but also rotationalmovement. The output section (gear box) located between the up-downmovement shaft 51 and the small-sized motor 5 includes a carrier outputshaft 52, a carrier 53, a desired number of planet gears 54, a sun gear55 at the center of the planet gears 54, and an inner gear 56. The gearbox comprising those gears is secured between an output shaft set cover57 and a motor bracket 58. The output box 6 when assembled isillustrated in more detail in FIGS. 11(A) and 11(B).

If the number of the planet gears 54 is changed, then the number ofrevolutions and revolution torque of the gear box are made adjustable.When the number of planet gears 54 is three, for example, reduction ofrevolution speed will be 1/20. Should the gear box be of a cartridgetype, an electric inter-dental brush may be made adjustable fordifferent rates of revolutions, even with the same voltage and samemotor. As long as the user purchases an electric inter-dental brush, heor she may use or adjust that one for his or her best brushing positionand brushing technique.

The driving mechanism for up-down movement and rotation is also shownand described in PCT application PCT/JP02/04510 “UNIVERSAL ANGLEELECTRIC ORAL CLEANING DEVICE”, filed on May 9, 2002 by the sameapplicant, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.

As shown in FIG. 1, the electric supply 16 is physically separated,making the whole of the electric inter-dental brush device light inweight and compact, and provides maneuverability and usage sensationsimilar to the popular hand held inter-dental brush. The establishedfinger-based brushing technique for manual (non-electric) brushes may beused with the present invention, particularly because the finger grip 1for housing the drive device is light in weight and may be held byfingers.

As shown in FIG. 2, the head assembly 2 having the cleaning brush 3 atits tip end is flexible and has a rotational phase relative to thefinger grip 1. The rotational phase of the head assembly 2 may be set atseveral different pre-set angles or a removable joint 8 between thefinger grip 1 and the head assembly 2 itself may be adjustable at anappropriate angle desired by the user. Therefore, in addition the headassembly 2 having the cleaning brush 3 is also detachable, allowing theangle between the cleaning brush and the finger grip 1 may be adjustedaccording to the desired area of cleaning.

Within the finger grip 1, there are located the small-sized motor 5, andthe power output device (gear box) 6. In the embodiment of FIG. 8, theultrasonic vibrator 24 is located within the finger grip 1. Drive forcefrom the shaft 7 is transferred to the joint 8, and a cam mechanism 9 toconvert the rotating movement into one or combination of rotatingmovement, repeating movement, sliding movement or repeating movement.The resulting movement is finally transferred to the cleaning brushthrough a slider 10 which penetrates through the head assembly 2 of theelectric inter-dental brush device.

A water resistant packing 11 is attached to the other end of the fingergrip 1, and an electric cord or wire 13 is pulled into the finger grip 1and attached to an input terminal 12 of the motor through this waterresistant packing 11.

This electric cord 13, as illustrated in FIG. 3, is stored in anelectric cord rewinding assembly 15, with a water repelling packing 14in the housing as a guide for the electric cord. The electric cordrewinding assembly 15 adjusts the length of the electric cord 13 to anappropriate length and a terminal secured at the back side of theelectric cord rewinding assembly 15 is used for attachment to thebattery or batteries (electrical power supply or power source) 16.

When the electric inter-dental brush device is used as a portabledevice, as shown in FIG. 5, the finger grip 1 and the head assembly 2having the cleaning brush 3 are held in spaces or recesses in thehousing 17, while the electric cord 13 is wound in the electric cordrewinding assembly 15. A housing cover 18 is attached as protection toprevent the finger grip 1, the head assembly 2 and the cleaning brush 3from contamination.

FIGS. 12(A) to 12(F) show another example of the housing 4 with a safetyswitch mechanism wherein the housing 4 is shaped like a breakable eggwith a left half 4′ and a right half 4″ with a couple of switches 30 and31. The switches 30 and 31 are connected in series between the motor 5and the power supply or batteries 16 for safety purposes. The firstswitch 31 is turned OFF only when pushed by the head assembly 2, whereasthe second switch 32 is OFF when the housing 4 is open and ON when thehousing 13 is closed. That is, power is supplied to the motor 5 onlywhen the housing 4 is closed and the head assembly 2 is pulled out fromthe housing 4.

When the housing 4 is held by the user and one click opened by the lefthand, for example, the housing 4 is opened so that the head assembly 2may be pulled out of the housing 4 by the right hand. Once the housing 4is then one click closed, the head assembly 2 starts operating. When thehousing 4 is gripped again after use, the housing 4 is opened to turnOFF the second switch 32. Therefore, safety is secured against misusebecause the head assembly 2 operates only when the housing 4 is closedand the head assembly 2 is pulled out of the housing 4.

It is noted that as shown in FIGS. 13(D) to 13(F) the head assembly 2 ispositioned with stability because the bottom of the housing 4 is curvedin a certain direction. Even when the electric cord 13 is rewound intothe rewinding assembly 15, the head assembly 2 will keep stable and willnot turn in a certain direction.

The shape of the housing 4 shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 may be designed to bepermanently attached to improve portability. When this shape and designis used, an AC adapter 19 and the electric cord rewinding assembly 15,which can adjust the length of the unwound electrical cord to anappropriate length, are both housed inside the housing 4. A suction cup20 is attached on the back side of the housing 4. For example, thehousing 4 may be attached to a surface of bathroom sink or a mirrorsurface. An AC adapter cord 21 is connected to a household AC electricoutlet as shown in FIG. 6. The electric cord 13 is wound up by theelectrical cord rewinding assembly 15, while the finger grip 1 remainsfitted closely to the housing 4.

The housing 4 is held by the suction cup 20 to the mirror or othersurfaces, as shown in FIG. 6. Under this condition, the finger grip 1may be pulled out with the cord extending to an appropriate length and arotation switch mechanism 28 secured on the electrical cord rewindingassembly 15 is automatically activated, so that the user can immediatelystart the process to clean the oral cavity. The cleaning brush 3 is keptdry when not in use, to prevent growth of caries and other bacteria, thecauses of gum diseases which are bacteria that do not like dry or airyenvironment. An electric cord rewinding wheel 22 is located at thebottom of the housing 4 for winding and holding an AC adapter cord 21.This arrangement makes the electric inter-dental brush device compactand makes the same not bulky and easy to change location of where theelectric inter-dental brush device is set up.

Where the ultrasonic vibrator 24 is used as the source of driving thecleaning brush 3, its electric power supply may still be separated asshown in FIG. 7. Therefore the outer shape of the electric inter-dentalbrush device as shown in FIG. 7 may be similar to the outer shape of aconventional hand-held inter-dental (non-electric) brush. The shape ofthe housing 4 is shaped to fit the finger grip 1 and a head arm 26. Theelectric cord 13 is wound and stored in the electrical cord windingwheel 22 and the cleaning brush 3 is held in a storage space in thehousing 4.

As the ultrasonic vibrator 24 may be applicable to inter-dental brush,as shown in FIG. 8, the housing 4 may be divided into a first divisionfor the AC adapter 19 with an electric cord and a second division forthe electric cord rewinding mechanism 15. The housing 4 may be madehighly portable by making the first and second divisions of the housing4 detachable. When the device is in use, the first and second divisionsof the housing 4 are separated and the AC adapter cord 21 and the powersupply electric cord 13 are pulled out from the electric cord rewindingmechanism 15. The AC adapter 19 is plugged into an electric utilityoutlet and the electrical cord rewinding mechanism 15 is affixed to amirror or other surface by a suction cup or other means. Because the ACadapter which is relatively heavy is secured on the mirror or othersurface, the negative effect towards the brushing technique is avoided.When the electrical cord rewinding mechanism 15 is maintained at thesame height as the height of the oral cavity, the weight of the electriccord 13 is also reduced by half, allowing the user to practice intricatebrushing technique.

When a brush holding mechanism is formed or installed on the housing 4,the cleaning brush 3 may be kept dry as shown in FIG. 5 to prevent thegrowth of caries and bacteria that cause periodontal disease, which donot prefer dry and ventilated area for growth. As shown in FIG. 8, theAC adapter cord 21 and the electric cord 13 are stored in the electriccord rewinding device 15. The AC adapter 19 and the electric cordrewinding device 15 is combined into as one unit with the aid of a jointmechanism 23. In the embodiment of FIG. 7 wherein the battery orbatteries (electrical power supply) 16 is kept within the housing 4, theelectrical cord 13 is wound onto the perimeter of the winding wheel 22.The portability of the electric inter-dental brush device is increasedby installing a brush holding mechanism (not shown) on the housing 4.

The shape of the cleaning brush 3 of the electric inter-dental brushdevice with the rewinding cord according to the embodiments of thepresent invention is not to be limited to the illustrations andsuggestions described above. It should be noted that the finger grip 1,the battery or batteries (electric power supply) 16, the AC adapter 19and the electrical cord rewinding assembly 15 may be combined in otherways as well as certain changes and improvements may be made, so long asit is within the spirit and scope of the present invention.

According to the illustrated embodiments of the present invention, theportion of the electric inter-dental portable electrical brush with therewinding cord, to be held by the hand of the user is small and lightweight. More particularly, the finger grip may be similar in shape andsize to a conventional hand-held inter-dental brush to allow the userthe maneuverability and usage sensation that is equal to theconventional hand-held inter-dental brush and allow the user to practicethe established brushing technique. In addition, the housing 4 may beequipped with a water repelling packing or gasket for daily use.

While only a few embodiments of the present invention have been shownand described, it is to be understood that many changes andmodifications may be made thereunto without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

1. An electric inter-dental brush device comprising: a finger grip forcontaining a source of drive therein; a housing for holding a powersupply to the drive source in the finger grip, the housing beingseparate from the finger grip; and a cleaning brush secured at a tipportion of the electric inter-dental brush device, the cleaning brushbeing powered by the source of drive.
 2. An electric inter-dental brushdevice comprising: a finger grip for containing a source of drivetherein; a housing for holding a power supply to the source of drive inthe finger grip, the housing being separate from the finger grip; acleaning brush secured at a tip portion of the electric inter-dentalbrush device, and a connection member for connecting between the sourceof drive and the power supply for powering the cleaning brush.
 3. Theelectric inter-dental brush device of claim 1 wherein the source ofdrive comprises a small-sized motor for driving the cleaning brush. 4.The electric inter-dental brush device of claim 1 wherein the cleaningbrush is freely removable from the finger grip.
 5. An electricinter-dental brush device comprising: a finger grip for containing asmall-sized motor; a housing for holding a battery to the small-sizedmotor in the finger grip, the housing being separate from the fingergrip; a cleaning brush secured at a tip portion of the electricinter-dental brush device, an electric cord for connecting between thesmall-sized motor and the power supply for powering the cleaning brush;and an electric cord rewinding assembly for holding and rewinding theelectric cord.
 6. An electric inter-dental brush device comprising: afinger grip for containing a small-sized motor; a housing for holding anAC adaptor to the small-sized motor in the finger grip, the housingbeing separate from the finger grip, the AC adaptor being plugged in ahousehold utility outlet; a cleaning brush secured at a tip portion ofthe electric inter-dental brush device, an electric cord for connectingbetween the small-sized motor and the AC adaptor for powering thecleaning brush; and an electric cord rewinding assembly for holding andrewinding the electric cord the cleaning the cleaning brush beingpowered by the AC adaptor.
 7. The electric inter-dental brush device ofclaim 1 further comprising: a suction cup for attaching the housing to amirror or other surface of a building or structure.
 8. The electricinter-dental brush device of claim 1 further comprising a space in thehousing for holding the cleaning brush when the brush is not in use. 9.An electric inter-dental brush device comprising: a finger grip to beheld by fingers of a user of the electric inter-dental brush device; amotor contained within the finger grip; an output section associatedwith the motor for providing drive force from the motor; a head assemblyholding a cleaning brush at its tip end and a brush arm connectingbetween the output section and the cleaning brush, the head assemblybeing connected to the output section to convey the drive force to thecleaning brush; a housing for holding components and parts of a powersupply to the motor, the finger grip being separate from the fingergrip; an electric cord for connecting the power supply to the motor; andan electric cord rewinding assembly secured in the housing for holdingand rewinding the electric cord when the electric inter-dental brushdevice is not in use.
 10. An electric inter-dental brush devicecomprising: a finger grip to be held by fingers of a user of theelectric inter-dental brush device; a motor contained within the fingergrip; an output section associated with the motor for providing driveforce from the motor; a head assembly holding a cleaning brush at itstip end and a brush arm connecting between the output section and thecleaning brush, the head assembly being connected to the output sectionto convey the drive force to the cleaning brush; a housing for holdingcomponents and parts of a power supply to the motor, the finger gripbeing separate from the finger grip; an electric cord for connecting thepower supply to the motor; an electric cord rewinding assembly securedin the housing for holding and rewinding the electric cord when theelectric inter-dental brush device is not in use; a space in the housingfor holding the cleaning brush and keeping the same dry when theelectric inter-dental brush device is not in use; and a cover forprotecting the space and the housing from outside.
 11. An electricinter-dental brush device comprising: a finger grip to be held byfingers of a user of the electric inter-dental brush device; a headassembly connected to the finger grip, the head assembly comprising ahead arm and a cleaning brush connected to the head arm; an ultrasonicvibrator secured within the finger grip for vibrating the cleaningbrush; a power supply for powering the ultrasonic vibrator; an electriccord for connecting the power supply to the ultrasonic vibrator; aelectric rewinding assembly for rewinding the electrical cord withcapability of adjusting the length of the cord; a housing for enclosingthe power supply, the housing being separate from the finger grip; astorage space formed into the housing; and a detachable cover forenclosing the finger grip and the head arm as protection againstoutside.
 12. The electrical inter-dental brush of claim 11, wherein thehousing is shaped to match the shape of the cleaning brush, includingthe head arm, and made detachable into separate pieces and also to beused as one piece.
 13. The electrical inter-dental brush device of claim11, wherein the head arm is made from resin material, the resin materialbeing permanently reshaped by pressure from fingers and the rotationalangle of the head arm being selectable or adjustable.
 14. The electricalinter-dental brush device of claim 11, wherein the cover is made fromwater repelling resin with a hole in the center of the cover for holdingthe electric cord and with slits made in a radiating pattern from thehole, acting like a shield packing.
 15. The electrical inter-dentalbrush device of claim 11, wherein the electric cord rewinding assemblyhas a waterproofed outer cover and a portion of the electric cordrewinding assembly within the housing is made detachable, while keepingelectric connection between the power supply and the ultrasonicvibrator.
 16. The electrical inter-dental brush device of claim 11further comprising a suction cup attached to a back side of the electricinter-dental brush device.
 17. The electrical inter-dental brush deviceof claim 11, further comprising a switch for turning on the ultrasonicvibrator when the electric cord is pulled out of the electric cordrewinding assembly to an appropriate length.
 18. An electricinter-dental brush device comprising: a finger grip for containing asource of drive therein; a housing for holding a power supply to thedrive source in the finger grip, the housing being separate from thefinger grip and freely opened or closed; a cleaning brush secured at atip portion of the electric inter-dental brush device, the cleaningbrush being powered by the source of drive; and a switch mechanism forallowing power supply to the cleaning brush only when the housing isclosed and the cleaning brush is out of the housing.
 19. The electricinter-dental brush device of claim 9 wherein the output section includesa plurality of planer gears for reducing the revolution speed of themotor.